Turntable set up

I will stay away from the tube head amp as I do not have much experience beyond the Cary 300SEI at $5500 (Awesome) and go for the analog goodies as I know them well.

Look into the Kuzma line for incredible arm/table values or a small Clearaudio for something with a little more bling that still sounds great. Stay away from the weird stuff out there as so much is questionable.

For a cartridge (this and the phono stage are the most important part of a vinyl rig) look to Benz Micro for the best in neutrality with a tad of warmth. Maybe a Wood or SLR would make you very happy. Koetsu cartridges are my favorites and a little on the warm side are more expensive.

For a good affordable phono stage, the Musical Surroundings Nova Phonomena and Supernova II (will function as a preamp for a line level source too) are both amazing and designed by Michael Yee. For a tube stage, the EAR 834P is tough to beat on the affordable side of things.

Good luck!

WHile the table will stretch your budget I would heartily recommend the Galibeir Serac, they are hand made by a one man ship in Colorado. Thom Mackris the man behind Galibier is wonderful to work with but like all things from small shops it can be a wait.

I'd also recommend an Aries series table from VPI, normally I am not a fan as I really do not like the scoutmaster series but the aries line mated with a lively cart can make some great sound. Do not go with the frosted platter and either seek out and Aries l or get the upgraded platter if you buy new.

I do not know enough about the Kuzma line but they look very solid. I would stay away from lower end rega or music hall stuff as a rule, while nice enough I'd rather buy into a better brand/architecture than get a near top of the line model from a middle road brand.

Depending on your timeline Eddie Current has a phono pre amp coming soon that sounds great. I've heard various incarnations of this and at each turn it has sounded good. You'll not do better in the under $2000 range.

Carts are very personal items I really like the Dynavector line and love the 20XH if your phono pre has lower gain. THe 20XL is great if you phono pre has some oomph (50-70db of gain) I own the D173 and love it. THe ZYX line is really nice and Sorasound , the old distributer is selling them cheap as they recently lost the rights to sell them. THe price of these carts is doubling so it is now or never on them as they would not be good value at twice the price.

Have you ever owned a TT and set one up before? If not I really advise getting a DD table from the late 70s early 80s as a start to muck around with first. At the very least you should be willing to try and do your own cart install and set up. THis will serve you well in the long run. While I have never seen the Fremer DVDs I have heard good things about them.

Talking about the Zyx carts, would you go for a Bloom at $445, Nums? Wouldn't suit my current arm -- but maybe somewhere down the line ...

Good advice. First, I have the Fremer disc and it's great. Highly recommended for anyone who loves vinyl.

Second, if you haven't used much vinyl, get a cheaper used deck and use that for a few months while you get used to the format and how a table works. How you react to the deck will point you in the right direction with a more expensive one. You won't know what you really like until you've used vinyl for a bit.

I found an old Rega Planar 3 for $200 locally and used it for a little over a year before upgrading. I chose to go with a Michell Orbe with a SME IV. I'm very happy with the setup - I have zero desire to upgrade or try something else. It's everything I wanted in a turntable. However, I can't say whether it would be for you.

Also, buy used. You'll save a bundle and will get a very nice setup - expensive gear is almost always babied and then sold to fund upgrades. It is almost never sold because it has a problem.

I'll second the Eddie Current phono stage, too. I heard it at CanJam and was impressed. I might have to get one. Though I still love my Fi Yph phono stage - they're worth it if you can find a used one or are willing to go on the waiting list.

I will also recommend a VPI Aries - I had one for a while, wonderful turntable. They do *NOT* mate well with Grado cartridges, though, so do be careful on that. I used it with a Benz L2 Wood, and that was a terrific, great sounding combination.

Also, the Audio Electronics (Cary) PH-1 is a very nice tube phono stage for $1K. Keep in mind you'll need another $100 for better tubes, and it's also moving magnet/high-output moving coil only, so if you want to use a low-output moving coil, you'd need a step-up transformer (that is what I do).

If you can find a Sota Comet, it's a wonderful "beginners" table. Actually, once you hear it, you might just be satisfied and leave it all alone! Yes, follow the Fremer DVD.

If I had 10k for a second TT set I would get:

Preamp: Quad 24 P phono $2000 or the ASR MiniBasis $1500
Cartridge: ZYX Atmos $2500 or Shelter 7000 $2800
Turntable: Rega P9 $5000 or Michell Orbe SE $5500

Even if your budget is high, i'd not spend it altogether blindly on equipment you have never heard, with 4-5000$ you can get a great sounding setup.

If you want a nice TT which is good looking and will last for years, i'd buy a Michell Gyrodec if it is available in your country, you could start with a cheap arm like a rega rb250 or the Michell Tecnoarm ( which is a fully modded and upgraded RB-250 ), both are a rather safe bet.

As for the cartridge...maybe a mid priced moving coil like an Audio Technica OC9 or AT-33PTG,a Denon Dl-304, a Benz Ace, or even a top of the range MM like an ortofon 2M Black or a Music Maker.

Add a preamp like the Trichord Dino with its upgraded psu, which has fully configurable loading and gain and goes for under 7-800$, another option is a Graham Slee era gold with its stepup Elevator EXP.

I don't think you'd be dissatisfied even with those "budget" components, it's still very good gear and you still have the possibility to upgrade the michell to orbe style platter, or add a better arm, as it is fully compatible with any standard 9" arm.

The vintage Denon turntables will give you a lot of jaw-dropping looks for the bucks. They are certifiable eye-candy.

I certainly like mine, and for much more than the looks - it's a GREAT sounding deck. Does look nice though:

I recommend the VPI Classic turntable in your price range. It earned a 2009 Golden Ear Award from Harry Pearson at The Absolute Sound after an impressive review. It knocked his socks off.

Thanks - not too bad for a 25 year old TT She's a heavy mutha too - weighs about 25 lbs.